Censorship

08.01.11

China Orders Media Blackout

Yu Riqian, EPA / Landov

The Chinese government ordered a media blackout as public fury mounted over last month’s high-speed train wreck—and the government’s reaction to the deadly crash. Newspaper editors were forced to destroy their Saturday editions, replacing investigative articles with cartoons and unrelated stories. The accident, which killed 40 and injured 192, is said to have been the result of a government risking lives for technological development, and hiding its mistakes with propaganda. Despite a directive to report only from state-run media, many online news outlets criticized the government openly. Beijing is undertaking a huge high-speed rail project and fears social unrest if there are problems.